The Witcher 2 - Previews @ RPS, Destructoid

Rock, Paper, Shotgun and Destructoid both have new Witcher 2 previews based on press builds. Let's start with RPS, who are generally very positive but they do have some concerns:

What isnít clear from this preview build, is just how flexible core quests are going to be in terms of what you can choose to do. So far I havenít seen much deviation from the linear path, despite chapter oneís general openness. While I made radically different choices during one key scene, the outcome was always essentially the same. I am hoping that later chapters will be far more forked and give us genuine choice and consequence. But I guess weíll see.
There are some other issues in this preview build that I think people will find significant. The first of these is the save function. Generally the game auto-saves at important points, but thereís potential in the more open areas for you to cover a lot of ground between auto-saves, and therefore lose a lot of game time if you die. This is covered by there being a quicksave function, which is only available outside of combat or specific set-piece scenarios. Weirdly, however, there is no manual save. Seems like a bit of an oversight.

On to Destructoid, who recount their experiences, ending with some positive comments:

I looked back on my experience with Dragon Age II afterwards, and BioWare's fantasy RPG now feels like it's in almost every way a mere toddler in the shadow of The Witcher 2. That's not to say DA II sucked, but a single village in The Witcher 2 already has more personality than all of Kirkwall. Moreover, the politics now run deep without treating you like a child for once. Characters feel human and treat you like an adult, the player is expected to deal with temporal jumps in narrative to keep up with the story, choices actually carry weight, and oh my god the breast textures!

The game will probably meet some criticism along the way. CD project has not the budget to grease the reviews like EA/Bioware has. And lets be honest , there are some hefty expectations. So people are bound to be disappointed one way or another.

But in any case i would urge every one to purchase the game from GOG because supporting what they are trying to do can only bring good to the whole industry. And hopefully will bring some others to the right path

Originally Posted by Twotricks
But in any case i would urge every one to purchase the game from GOG because supporting what they are trying to do can only bring good to the whole industry. And hopefully will bring some others to the right path

Sorry, I need the box. It even has a map, soundtrack CD and other goodies! *Faints* If they said "hey the boxed version will just be a disc in a small case with no printed manual" I would have bought it from GOG, but they went the opposite direction.

As for the previews they sound good… I always use quicksave and manually save before I quit the game, so that doesn't bother me. I wonder if they removed multiple save slots and manual saves so that people did not reload after choices?

Damn, this is looking and sounding incredibly good, but I still havn't played through the first Witcher. I've been meaning too, but have just been busy. I did try to play the Witcher when it was originally released but with the very horrible loading times and other problems back then I had to give up. {another title I can think of that was worse is "The Last Remnant…"}

Anyway, a few weeks ago I was planning to get started on the Witcher, and thought, "hey I wonder if there are mods out there" since that seems to be a huge deal in recent years, with some people modifying and updating older titles that were not originally designed to be modded, and sure enough there are some really good ones out there.

The best two I found are a complete overhaul of all the textures, and a high-rez character skins, and then I added a scabbard mob with weapons. It looks incredible now, but still havn't played it…lol {dern Rift is eating up all my time of late…} I also found one that changes the overall combat for the better, and rebalances all the weapons and damage values.

I'm sure after Witcher II releases and I watch a review of it, it'll convince me to finally delve into it so I can play the second one thereafter…

I don't think people should feel like they have to buy from GOG to support this DRM-free experiment they're doing.

They won't be comparing sales at GOG vs sales elsewhere, they'll be comparing sales everywhere vs, well, whatever internal metric they use to decide if the product is a financial success. Buying the game at a retail outlet will make CD Projekt just as happy, just as long as you BUY it, and not download it for free from somewhere.

I'm looking forward to buying a game not only because I want to play it, but because I want to send a message to all the paranoid publishers out there that excessive DRM isn't necessary to make a buck in this industry…

Originally Posted by Fantasm
They won't be comparing sales at GOG vs sales elsewhere,

They might, to try and show publishers DRM does not increase sales. Also they get more money from GOG sales, since it is a direct payment to the publisher. On Steam they will get 60%, on boxed retail even less than that, but on GOG they get 100%.

The best way to support CDPR and DRM-free gaming is to buy it on GOG. I really wish I could, but I am a collector and need that box.

Graphics settings: Yeah, the final game will have more detailed graphics settings.

Saves: There will be a manual save feature, don’t worry!

QTEs: Oh, they’re not so bad, and they add further variety to the gameplay.

Linearity: The game opens up significantly and has lots of variation based on the choices you make. As we’ve mentioned in previous demos, there are entire locations/portions of the game you will NOT see on your first play through. And, again, there are ultimately 16 different endings/end states based on your choices and actions.

Piracy stuff: We’re releasing the game DRM-free on GOG, and in an hour or so (during the CDP Conference) we’ll talk a bit more about copy protection in other versions. Needless to say, we’re not big fans of DRM. That said, we’re removing the excuses that pirates tend to throw out there… so just buy the game if you want to play it, eh? I don’t see how that’s a problem

A permanent internet connection will not be necessary to play forthcoming PC RPG The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings, developer CD Projekt has revealed.

The announcement came during the CDP Conference in Warsaw, as Tweeted on the official game feed.

You will need a one-time net connection when you get started to confirm you have "a legit copy of the game" but after that you can play internet-free.

On top of all that, the most recent previews have peaked my interest. I don't know why I am so up and down on this game, but I am. Right now, I'm feeling good about it. I think the tedious nature of act 3 (the swamp area) in the original makes me cautious. That, and the fact that I deeply regret buying the Two Worlds II CE only to find myself bored with the repetitive quests very quickly. Despite all that, the Witcher 2 is looking good. I am just a bit worried about the nature of the auto-target combat that looks like it could get repetitive quickly.

I'm getting both GoG and a boxed version. I'll get GoG immediately and the boxed version in a few months once the price has dropped. I'll wait and see if CDPR decides to have DLC this time. If so, I'll buy the GoTY package. Using more acronyms, I'll make sure to get it PDQ and install it ASAP.

Originally Posted by guenthar
I hope that interview is right and there will be a manual save system because I don't use quicksave or autosave. The few games that haven't had a manual save didn't get played by me.